# Setting Screensavers

This chapter describes how to set preferences for the screensaver. This chapter also provides information on how to modify the displays that are available for the screensaver.

## Introduction to Screensavers

A screensaver is an application that replaces the image on a screen when the screen is not in use. The screensaver application for the GNOME Desktop is gnome-screensaver. The following sections describe how to set preferences for the gnome-screensaver application, and how to change the themes that are available for the screensaver.

## Setting Screensaver Preferences

All screensaver preferences and settings are stored in GConf.

To modify screensaver application preferences, users can use the Screensaver preference tool. For information on screensaver preferences, see GNOME Desktop User's Guide.

Users can also run the command `/usr/bin/gnome-screensaver-preferences` to open the Screensaver Preferences dialog.

To set default screensaver settings and policy for all users, modify the screensaver settings in the Default GConf Configuration Source.

To set mandatory screensaver settings and policy for all users, modify the screensaver settings in the Mandatory GConf Configuration Source.

## Modifying Screensaver Themes

The screensaver application allows users to choose one or more screensaver themes. A screensaver theme is an application that displays images on the screen of the user when the screen is not in use. The available screensaver themes are listed in the Screensaver preference tool.

To add a new screensaver theme, copy the executable file for the screensaver theme engine to somewhere in your PATH or into the screensaver theme engine executable directory. The screensaver theme engine executable directory for your system can be determined using the following command:

    pkg-config --variable=privlibexecdir gnome-screensaver

Next, add a `.desktop` file for the theme into the screensaver themes directory. The screensaver themes directory for your system can be determined using the following command:

    pkg-config --variable=themesdir gnome-screensaver

In the Exec field of the `.desktop` file include any arguments that are required to run the screensaver theme on the whole screen, rather than in a window. For example, some legacy screensaver theme engines may require you to include the `-root` option to display the screensaver display on the whole screen.

The Screensaver infrastructure implements themes according to the XDG menu specification. By supporting this specification, GNOME allows you to:

- Customize the themes easily. You can edit a small number of files to customize the available themes. You do not need to modify your applications or move files.

- Install themes easily. You do not need to provide information about the system when you install the themes.

- Configure the system so that users cannot modify the themes.

For more information, see menustructure-0.